Delays in Monksland likely to continue

Motorists in Monksland face further traffic delays over the next week or so after the council extended the lane closure to facilitate emergency works on the stretch. One lane of the east-bound carriageway, close to Monksland, remains shut to traffic between junction 12 Roscommon and junction 13 Athlone West, following an mudslide incident there over a fortnight ago now. A council spokesperson told the Westmeath Independent that a notice of closure is in place until this Friday, but that is almost certainly going to be extended for all of next week as well. He stressed that they are anxious to get the job done as soon as possible, given the traffic implications for people in the area, but admitted they have go through a process, in consultation with the NRA, to ensure the correct option is chosen and value for money is garnered for the taxpayer. They are currently awaiting designs from consultants and geo-technical reports from engineers in relation to the NRA's preferred option to secure the embankment - soil nailing. This would involve a machine driving metal pins or nails into the bank, possibly shot blasting the embankment and putting a mesh over the top to ensure there is no movement there in the future. The council spokesperson concluded that this measure is seen at present as the least intrusive way of making sure there is no further slippage of debris along the stretch in the future. He expects to be in a position to procure a contractor to do the project shortly and the work will most likely take a number of days to complete.